The answer was the Bala shark
Balantiocheilos melanopterus
Daily Animal puzzle number 26 ran on 28 August 2026. The secret animal was the Bala shark. The table below holds the traits the game compares after each guess.
Traits the game compares
| Scientific name | Balantiocheilos melanopterus |
|---|---|
| Class | Actinopterygii |
| Order | Cypriniformes |
| Family | Cyprinidae |
| Genus | Balantiocheilos |
| Diet | Omnivore |
| Activity | Diurnal |
| Body covering | Scales |
| Habitat | Freshwater |
| Reproduction | Eggs |
| Venomous | None |
| Conservation status | VU |
| Walks on | No legs |
| Typical adult mass | 1.1 lb |
How the guesses narrow it down
Daily Animal gives you six guesses. Each guess is a real animal, and the game marks every trait it shares with the secret animal.
Taxonomy does most of the work. A guess in the same family as the secret animal is very close. A guess in the same class only tells you the broad group — for the Bala shark, that group is Actinopterygii.
The other tiles narrow the field when taxonomy cannot. Diet, activity, the legs it walks on, body covering and habitat each split the pool a different way, so two guesses from different branches usually locate the answer faster than two similar guesses.